DAVID V. SMITH was a private in the 12th
New Jersey Volunteers during the Civil War. His letters
to his wife Elizabeth convey the constant and fatiguing
duty of the soldier’s life. Though his regiment
served mostly as pickets and guards, Smith did see battle
in two major campaigns: Chancellorsville and Gettysburg
(described in detail in this letter). Smith suffered from
chronically swollen and painful legs. In August 1863 His
condition sent him to the hospital, where he died two
month later from his illness. Get
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